SHARE YOUR MEMORIES OF AYRES HALL!
Do you remember your college days when you climbed the monumental “Hill” to get to a class in Ayres Hall? Once you made it to the top and paused for a deep breath, you could look out over all of campus. At that moment, everything in the world seemed possible.
Ayres Hall has become a campus icon, a building that holds lots of memories for all UT students and alumni.
As we anticipate the re-opening of Ayres Hall, we invite you to reminisce with us. Please share your memories below and read the comments of your classmates, friends and teachers.
I endured an 8:00 a.m. Geography class which required me to climb the steps to Ayres every morning. It was cold, I was tired, and it would have been much more unpleasant were it not for the cheerful notes of the Pride of the Southland band, which could be heard clearly from those steps, as they completed morning practice. It was a wonderful beginning to the day and never failed to make me smile.
As an undergraduate at UT in the early 70’s, I had several classes in Ayres Hall. The arduous walk from Massey to Ayres is memorable, but the sense that would overcome me every time I entered is something fondly remembered. It IS a Hallowed Hill and a Stately Hall. I felt connected to the generations there and loved being surrounded by the sights, smells, and texture of the “old and enduring.”
Fast forward to the first year that Glocker was unavailable for classes and when we became so “classroom space challenged.” Now, as an instructor UT, I am assigned to a classroom in Ayres instead of my usual spot in Jesse Harris. I was so excited at first and I had that same great bombardment of the senses and connection with the generations when I entered the building and the classroom. (My calves also burned from climbing the stairs to get from my office in Jesse Harris to Ayres!) But it didn’t take long for me to get “unexcited.” I was accustomed to classroom technology and felt like I was working with one hand tied behind my back. I was informed that if I needed an overhead projector (yes, the kind you use transparencies on), I would have to bring one with me!!!!
All of this is to say that I am thrilled with the dedication to both painstaking restoration and preservation AND modern technology. Future students will have the best of both worlds–the grandeur of the past and the wonders of the day. Kudos to all involved in the decision-making and work.
I was at UT from 1947 to 1951. I had algebra and English in Ayres Hall. My algebra teacher later married a man that was in the class. One thing I remember about “The Hill” was all the trailers parked on the hill in front of Ayres for veterans that had returned to finish their education. Once you were in school a few weeks, the climb was nothing.
When I think of Ayres Hall I am reminded of my College Algebra professor, Tony Farvin. This man and his class were a complete enigma to me. Mr. Farvin was a foriegn man. One time after class I approached him to ask a question and decided to make a little small talk first. I asked him, “So Mr. Farvin, you’re from Iran (I-ran) right?” His eyes immediately opened wide and he gave me a strange glare and quickly responded, “Ran where? Where did you run!”. Apparently I had deeply offended him for mispronouncing his country. “It’s E-ron!” he said. I thought it was hilarious! Anyhow, there were some good times in that beautiful building that I’ll never forget.
My Freshman year I had a psych class on the THIRD floor in Ayers Hall at 7:50 in the morning. In all my years since then I have never forgot how it felt to actually reach my desk, lay my head down on it and try to get a deep breath. Needless to say I never repeated that scheduling mistake again. I don’t really remember anything about the class, but I do remember the trek up.